Moderate and deep draft boats on trailers are often launched from inclined ramps at the water's edge. The trailer and boat are backed down the ramp into the water until the water is deep enough to float or slide the boat off the trailer. A tow vehicle can only go so far into the water before incurring damage, and it has been found that the inclination of the typical launch ramp is insufficient to allow the launch of a moderate or deep draft boat without decoupling the trailer from the tow vehicle. Once the boat is launched from the decoupled trailer, some means for retrieving the trailer must be provided. Similar problems arise when retrieving moderate or deep draft boats at typical launch ramps.
The currently existing boat trailer hardware art includes extending trailer tongues, pieces of free cable attached to the trailer and other "extender" type hardware to permit the trailer to be uncoupled and lowered far enough down the launch ramp into the water for the boat to float from the trailer. Extension tongues and extender cables suffer from numerous drawbacks, including the considerable manipulation required to extend and retract the additional hardware. There is extra time taken on the launching ramp while others wait. The use of a free cable requires extra time and also creates the increased potential for trailer loss due to poor cable connections between the tow vehicle and the boat trailer. This heightens the potential for a loose trailer on the ramp resulting in damage to other boats, as well as personal injury.
A need has thus arisen for a launching and retrieval aid for enabling easier, more rapid and more secure boat launches and recoveries and for consuming less time for manipulation while occupying the launch ramp.